"Dark Fantasy" is a song by American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 hip hop

Hip hop music

Hip hop music, also called hip-hop, rap music or hip-hop music, is a musical genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted...

 artist Kanye West

Kanye West

Kanye Omari West is an American rapper, singer, and record producer. West first rose to fame as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records, where he eventually achieved recognition for his work on Jay-Z's album The Blueprint, as well as hit singles for musical artists including Alicia Keys, Ludacris, and...

, from his fifth studio album My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. The song serves as the opening track of the album, and was written by Kanye West, Ernest Wilson

No I.D.

No I.D., officially known as Immenslope and also known as Ernest Wilson , is a hip hop and R&B record producer, also the vice-president of Def Jam Recordings, best known for his early work with Chicago rapper Common and is known as "The Godfather of Chicago hip hop".. The nickname No I.D...

, Jeff Bhasker, Mike Dean

Mike Dean (producer)

Mike Dean is an American hip-hop producer. He is known for pioneering the "Dirty South" sound in the 1990s, particularly in work for artists from Rap-A-Lot Records. Dean has most notably worked alongside Scarface of the Geto Boys, 2Pac, Do or Die, Tha Dogg Pound, Yukmouth of the Luniz, Outlawz,...

 and the RZA

RZA

Robert Fitzgerald Diggs, better known by his stage name RZA , is an American Grammy-winning music producer, multi-instrumentalist, author, emcee, and occasional actor, director, and screenwriter. A prominent figure in Hip Hop, RZA is the de facto leader of the Wu-Tang Clan. He has produced almost...

. It features an opening narrative delivered by Nicki Minaj

Nicki Minaj

Onika Tanya Maraj , better known by her stage name Nicki Minaj; ), is a Trinidadian-born American recording artist...

, contains backing vocals by Teyana Taylor and Bon Iver

Bon Iver

Bon Iver is a Grammy nominated folk band founded in 2007 by American indie folk singer-songwriter Justin Vernon. It includes Michael Noyce, Sean Carey, and Matthew McCaughan. Vernon released Bon Iver's debut album, For Emma, Forever Ago independently in July 2007. The majority of that album was...

, and samples "In High Places

In High Places (song)

"In High Places" is a single by musician Mike Oldfield, released in 1987 . "In High Places" is from the album Crises, "Poison Arrows" is from Discovery and "Jungle Gardenia" is a non-album track....

" by Mike Oldfield

Mike Oldfield

Michael Gordon Oldfield is an English multi-instrumentalist musician and composer, working a style that blends progressive rock, folk, ethnic or world music, classical music, electronic music, New Age, and more recently, dance. His music is often elaborate and complex in nature...

. Despite not being released as a single, the hype generated by the release of My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy caused the song to enter the Billboard Hot 100

Billboard Hot 100

The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...

 at 60. The song received positive reviews by music critics

Music criticism

See also Music journalism for reporting on classical and popular music in the media.The Oxford Companion to Music defines music criticism as 'the intellectual activity of formulating judgments on the value and degree of excellence of individual works of music, or whole groups or genres'. In this...

, praising West's verses and the production.

Dark Fantasy was also used during the opening sequence of Runaway

Runaway (2010 film)

Runaway is a 35-minute short film directed by and starring Kanye West. It serves as the music video for a compilation of songs from West's album, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. It is inspired by other music-related films such as Purple Rain, Pink Floyd The Wall and Michael Jackson's Thriller...

, a 35 minute music video directed by Kanye West set to music from My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. The song was used in advertisements for the film The Hangover Part II.

Composition

Dark Fantasy is 4 minutes, 41 seconds long. The song is introduced with a narrative by Nicki Minaj

Nicki Minaj

Onika Tanya Maraj , better known by her stage name Nicki Minaj; ), is a Trinidadian-born American recording artist...

, elocuting in an English accent, that serves as a retelling of writer Roald Dahl

Roald Dahl

Roald Dahl was a British novelist, short story writer, fighter pilot and screenwriter.Born in Wales to Norwegian parents, he served in the Royal Air Force during the Second World War, in which he became a flying ace and intelligence agent, rising to the rank of Wing Commander...

's poetic rework of "Cinderella

Cinderella

"Cinderella; or, The Little Glass Slipper" is a folk tale embodying a myth-element of unjust oppression/triumphant reward. Thousands of variants are known throughout the world. The title character is a young woman living in unfortunate circumstances that are suddenly changed to remarkable fortune...

". It introduces the album's themes of decadence and hedonism, with West musing how "the plan was to drink until the pain was over / But what’s worse, the pain or the hangover?". His lyrics on the track contain various musical and popular culture references, including those to the song "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)

Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)

"Mercy Mercy Me " was the second single from Marvin Gaye's 1971 album, What's Going On. Following the breakthrough of the title track's success, the song, written solely by Gaye, became one of his most poignant anthems of sorrow regarding the environment...

", the Lamborghini Murciélago

Lamborghini Murciélago

The Lamborghini Murciélago is a two-door, two-seat sports car produced by Italian automaker Lamborghini between 2001 and 2010. Successor to the Diablo and flagship of the automaker's lineup, the Murciélago was introduced as a coupé in 2001. The automaker's first new design in eleven years, the car...

 sports car, rapper Nas

Nas

Nasir bin Olu Dara Jones, who performs under the name Nas , formerly Nasty Nas, is an American rapper and actor. He is regarded as one of the most important figures in hip hop and one of the most skilled and influential rappers of all-time...

, fashion designer Phoebe Philo

Phoebe Philo

Phoebe Philo is a British fashion designer and the Creative Director of Céline. Philo is also known for her work at Chloé.Philo graduated from Central Saint Martins in 1996, a year after Stella McCartney...

, short story "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

"The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" is a short story by Washington Irving contained in his collection The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent., written while he was living in Birmingham, England, and first published in 1820...

", the song "Sex on Fire

Sex on Fire

"Sex on Fire" is the first single to be taken from Kings of Leon's fourth studio album Only by the Night and as of September 2009, the second most-downloaded digital single ever in the United Kingdom...

", singer Leona Lewis

Leona Lewis

Leona Louise Lewis is a British singer and songwriter. Lewis first came to prominence in 2006 when she won the third series of the British television series The X Factor....

, and television character Steve Urkel

Steve Urkel

Steven Quincy Urkel, generally known as Steve Urkel or simply Urkel, is a fictional character on the ABC/CBS sitcom Family Matters, portrayed by Jaleel White...

. The song samples a portion of "In High Places

In High Places (song)

"In High Places" is a single by musician Mike Oldfield, released in 1987 . "In High Places" is from the album Crises, "Poison Arrows" is from Discovery and "Jungle Gardenia" is a non-album track....

" by Mike Oldfield

Mike Oldfield

Michael Gordon Oldfield is an English multi-instrumentalist musician and composer, working a style that blends progressive rock, folk, ethnic or world music, classical music, electronic music, New Age, and more recently, dance. His music is often elaborate and complex in nature...

, a pop rock

Pop rock

Pop rock is a music genre which mixes a catchy pop style and light lyrics in its guitar-based rock songs. There are varying definitions of the term, ranging from a slower and mellower form of rock music to a subgenre of pop music...

 song from 1987.

Chart performance

Due to the hype generated by the anticipation of My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, Dark Fantasy debuted on the Billboard Hot 100

Billboard Hot 100

The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...

 at 60, without actually being released as a single. The second week it dropped to 83, and by the third week it exited the chart. The song performed similarly in Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

, charting at 67 on the Canadian Hot 100

Canadian Hot 100

The Canadian Hot 100 is a music singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine which ranks songs in Canada. The chart debuted in the Billboard issue dated June 16, 2007 and was made available for the first time via their online services on June 7, 2007...

. Other than the four singles released from the album, (Power

Power (Kanye West song)

"Power" is a single by American hip hop recording artist Kanye West, released as the lead single from his fifth studio album, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. The song features additional vocals by Dwele and is co-produced by Kanye West and Symbolyc One...

, All of the Lights

All of the Lights

"All of the Lights" is a song by American hip hop recording artist Kanye West, released January 18, 2011, as the fourth single from his fifth studio album, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy...

, Monster, and Runaway

Runaway (Kanye West song)

"Runaway" is a single by American recording artist Kanye West, released as the second single from his fifth studio album, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. It features a guest verse from rapper Pusha T of Clipse. The single debuted at number 12 on the US Billboard Hot 100.A 35-minute short film...

) Dark Fantasy was the only song off the album to chart. The song debuted at position 10 on the Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles as reported by Billboard

Billboard (magazine)

Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...

. It also appeared at position 80 on the South Korean Gaon Chart

Gaon Chart

The Gaon Chart is a national record chart of South Korea. It is complied by the Korea Music Content Industry Association and sponsored by South Korea's Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism; with an aim to create a national chart for Korea similar to the Billboard charts and Oricon charts...

, and at 189 the following week.

Critical reception

Dark Fantasy has received positive reviews from music critics. The Washington Post

The Washington Post

The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...

s Chris Richards described the song as having "mutant gospel

Gospel

A gospel is an account, often written, that describes the life of Jesus of Nazareth. In a more general sense the term "gospel" may refer to the good news message of the New Testament. It is primarily used in reference to the four canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John...

 crescendos", and MTV News

MTV News

MTV News is the news division of MTV, one of the first and most popular music television network in the U.S., as well as some of MTV's related channels around the world. MTV News began in the late 1980s with the program The Week In Rock, hosted by Kurt Loder, the first official MTV News correspondent...

 praised Nicki Minaj

Nicki Minaj

Onika Tanya Maraj , better known by her stage name Nicki Minaj; ), is a Trinidadian-born American recording artist...

's verse, declaring that "it is structured like a nursery rhyme

Nursery rhyme

The term nursery rhyme is used for "traditional" poems for young children in Britain and many other countries, but usage only dates from the 19th century and in North America the older ‘Mother Goose Rhymes’ is still often used.-Lullabies:...

 and sets the tone for the song (which is intense and hallucinatory) and the album". Rolling Stone

Rolling Stone

Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...

writer Rob Sheffield

Rob Sheffield

Rob Sheffield is an American music journalist and author. He is currently a contributing editor at Rolling Stone, writing music reviews and essays on pop culture. Prior to that, he was a contributing editor at Blender before the print version of the magazine folded in 2009, and at Spin...

 wrote the song contained "lethal wit" praising the lyricism, and further wrote "In "Dark Fantasy," he rhymes "mercy, mercy me

Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)

"Mercy Mercy Me " was the second single from Marvin Gaye's 1971 album, What's Going On. Following the breakthrough of the title track's success, the song, written solely by Gaye, became one of his most poignant anthems of sorrow regarding the environment...

, that Murcielago

Lamborghini Murciélago

The Lamborghini Murciélago is a two-door, two-seat sports car produced by Italian automaker Lamborghini between 2001 and 2010. Successor to the Diablo and flagship of the automaker's lineup, the Murciélago was introduced as a coupé in 2001. The automaker's first new design in eleven years, the car...

" with "diablo

Devil

The Devil is believed in many religions and cultures to be a powerful, supernatural entity that is the personification of evil and the enemy of God and humankind. The nature of the role varies greatly...

," "bravado" and "My chick in that new Phoebe Philo

Phoebe Philo

Phoebe Philo is a British fashion designer and the Creative Director of Céline. Philo is also known for her work at Chloé.Philo graduated from Central Saint Martins in 1996, a year after Stella McCartney...

/So much head

Fellatio

Fellatio is an act of oral stimulation of a male's penis by a sexual partner. It involves the stimulation of the penis by the use of the mouth, tongue, or throat. The person who performs fellatio can be referred to as the giving partner, and the other person is the receiving partner...

, I woke up in Sleepy Hollow

Sleepy Hollow

-Fiction:* The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, an 1819 short story by Washington Irving* Sleepy Hollow , a 1998 adaptation of Washington Irving's short story* Sleepy Hollow , a 1999 movie by Tim Burton...

. It's some genius stuff." David Amidon of PopMatters

PopMatters

PopMatters is an international webzine of cultural criticism that covers many aspects of popular culture. PopMatters publishes reviews, interviews, and detailed essays on most cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, films, books, video games, comics, sports, theater,...

 felt that West's vocals were "layered a baker’s dozen different ways, they’re synthetic". Dan Vidal of URB stated enjoyed Minaj's verse, describing it as a "psuedo-cockney-accented opening narration" and praised the song's arrangement as "spine-tingling". David Browne

David Browne

David Browne is an American journalist and author. He was the resident music critic at Entertainment Weekly between 1990 and 2006. He was an editor at Music & Sound Output magazine and a music critic at the New York Daily News before EW...

 of Time

Time (magazine)

Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...

wrote "Tracks like "Dark Fantasy" and "So Appalled

So Appalled

"So Appalled" is a Hip-hop song by recording artist Kanye West and appears as the seventh song on the track-listing of his fifth studio album My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. Originally released unmastered as the seventh G.O.O.D. Fridays track, the song finally made its way onto My Beautiful Dark...

" are built on rumbling tanks of pianos and strings that sound as if West is marching into the apocalypse

Apocalypse

An Apocalypse is a disclosure of something hidden from the majority of mankind in an era dominated by falsehood and misconception, i.e. the veil to be lifted. The Apocalypse of John is the Book of Revelation, the last book of the New Testament...

."

Chart positions

Chart (2010)	Peak Position
Canada (Canadian Hot 100 Canadian Hot 100 The Canadian Hot 100 is a music singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine which ranks songs in Canada. The chart debuted in the Billboard issue dated June 16, 2007 and was made available for the first time via their online services on June 7, 2007... )	67
US Billboard Hot 100 Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...	60
US Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles (Billboard Billboard (magazine) Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis... )	10
South Korean Gaon Chart Gaon Chart The Gaon Chart is a national record chart of South Korea. It is complied by the Korea Music Content Industry Association and sponsored by South Korea's Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism; with an aim to create a national chart for Korea similar to the Billboard charts and Oricon charts...	80